Eumenide
by anime animal
Summary: AU. Taken as a spoil of war, Hyrule's princess is bound in submission to her country's conqueror until she is pushed to the limit. Based largely on Aeschylus' Agamemnon.


**Disclaimer:**** The Legend of Zelda and all related characters are property of Nintendo.**

**Dedication: For Louisa (aka weegie), who is brilliant. If you call yourself a Zelda fan, then you must visit her site indiezelda at least once and check out her amazing comics and artwork. She produced the most gorgeous picture of Conran and the Greymalkin (from Vagabond) for me and I wrote this for her in return, as she is a Greek mythology fan and wanted something _Agamemnon_-related. For further details, see author's note at the end.**

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**EUMENIDE**

_I brooded on this trial, this ancient blood feud _

_year__ by year. At last my hour came._

_Here I stand and here I struck_

_and__ here my work is done._

_I did it all. I don't deny it, no._

_He had no way to flee or fight his destiny-_

_- AESCHYLUS' AGAMEMNON: l1.396-1401_

oOo

She couldn't breathe.

The tormenting storm of emotions which coursed through her being was constricting everything, and as she struggled to catch her breath she had to lean heavily against the wall to stop herself from fainting.

He was dead.

At long last, he was dead.

The sight of the corpse momentarily made her want to vomit, but she soon swallowed the primal urge as a sudden wave of euphoria destroyed the nausea. All these years of sitting passively in the corner, watching with the same fixed smile as her all powerful husband flaunted his dominance and belittled her all in one breath, all those nights of lying like a vegetable as he used her as his doll in the privacy of his chambers.

Zelda straightened and stepped away from the wall, breathing deeply and feeling strength totally unknown to her fuel her steps. Outside there would be questions that needed answering, accusations to be flung at her, possible acts of retribution to follow but those no longer troubled her. The ordeal was over, vengeance was hers and at long last she had escaped the guilt and personal disgust that had plagued her for seven long years.

Zelda threw back her head and laughed.

oOo

Ganondorf had taken her as his wife the day he had plunged his sword deep into the soft tissue of her father's chest, the day he had thrown her infant brother from the castle ramparts to his death, the day he had raped her mother and cut her throat afterwards as Zelda had hidden under the queen's bed, trembling but unable to move or tear her eyes from the carnage that unfolded before her. And then those eyes of burning madness had fixed themselves upon the bed and it was as though he had known she was there as a sick, twisted little smile played itself out upon his features.

"Take her," an older woman at his side had said. "Take her as your queen and know total victory. She is young, pure… she will bear you sons. None can challenge you if you have the true heir in your bed."

At the age of twelve, the last of Hyrule's royalty, the last Princess of the Blood, became Ganondorf Dragmire's child-bride.

She played her role like a great actress if the stage- a patient, mild mannered girl who was obedient to her husband's every whim. Underneath her seemingly devoted compliance there lurked the fear that one day he would tire of her and cut her throat in the same manner as he had done to her mother; so she served him faithfully, playing the devoted wife with one hundred per cent fidelity. And yet each night, as she lay trembling quietly beside the sleeping mountain of a man in his enormous bed, she became that little bit more disgusted with herself, with him, until she could stand what she had become no longer. That day, every mirror was removed from Queen Zelda's chambers. Her innocent heart became tainted with bitter resentment and ferocious loathing for her captor, her torturer, her husband.

oOo

Everything began to change two years later, the night a messenger came bringing news to the palace. The household had been absorbed in their sumptuous feast when the envoy from the desert had flung herself on her knees before her king. Ganondorf rose suddenly, furious at having his meal interrupted.

"This had better be important, woman."

Terrified, the Gerudo girl raised her head from the floor and gazed in terror at her king.

"Forgive me sire, but I bring desperate news from Mistress Twinrova, your mother."

At this, Zelda lowered her goblet and began to pay attention.

"Go on."

Ganondorf's tone was bored, and the young queen could see the desert girl swallowing nervously.

"My lord, the Spirit Temple has been plundered by an army from Termina and the Sage abducted from within its hallowed walls. Your people are incensed sire, the demand that you lead us to retrieve her!"

Zelda had never seen her husband so angry, his face had gone deathly pale and his jaw had tensed as he struggled to keep his cool.

"Then retrieve her I shall," he snarled. "No-one insults the King of Hyrule and lives to brag about it."

The irony of his statement had almost moved Zelda to smile, but she was much too frightened by his temper to risk antagonising him. The court had retired, its mood dampened and spirit depleted. Zelda was not surprised to find herself summoned to Ganondorf's bed and lay submissive beneath him as he took her. As always she said and did nothing, staring blindly up at the canopy above the bed and fighting not to be sick.

"I would have liked to have got a child upon you before I left."

His voice broke through the silence like a thunderclap and shook Zelda awake from her trance.

"I am sorry that I could not have been a better wife to you, sire," she replied meekly.

For a moment she could see his face outlined in the moonlight looking at her with a puzzled expression upon its grotesque features. Then he had smiled softly at her.

"You have been a very fine wife to me, princess," he purred, cupping her breast. "You are still young; there is plenty of time for you to give me my son."

He kissed her, and once again she found herself detached from her body.

"I plan on leaving you in charge while I am gone," he told her. "The subjects respect you and they are too scared of me to give you any trouble. I will be back before the end of the summer."

Summer rolled into autumn, autumn rolled into winter and still the armies of the Gerudo could not retrieve their Sage.

oOo

Without Ganondorf around Zelda became a totally different person. Where she had been meek and timid she became confident and outgoing. Her subjects were surprised to find her a wise and competent ruler who would not be bullied by those who were insulted by her being put in charge. Under her gentle but resourceful rule Hyrule soon prospered.

Link had come to the castle just as Zelda had been getting to grips with everything, and from the very moment she had laid eyes on him she knew that she wanted him. The man was so totally different to the boorishness of her husband. Where Ganondorf was forceful, Link was gently persuasive, his wit sharper and his character far more agreeable than the king's. He was hugely unpopular with Ganondorf's staunchest supporters, yet his good looks and charm were enough to endear him to every female in the court, including the queen. He pretended to be indifferent to her, but every now and again their eyes would meet and they would hold each other's glances, feeling the electricity and getting nothing but excitement from it. As she had gone to her bed one night she found him waiting in her chambers.

"You have some nerve coming here Master Link," she snapped, her eyes narrowed.

"You can't tell me that you didn't hope I'd be here," he returned, taking a step towards her. "I saw how you looked at me."

"You saw nothing," Zelda replied evenly, wishing that she was as calm as she pretended to be. "My husband will kill you for this."

"But he isn't here, is he?"

He had taken a step closer to her and Zelda panicked. She gathered her strength and slapped him clean across the face.

"Stay away from me or I'll scream," she snarled.

Link held his hand over his cheek, his face shocked.

"Your Majesty, I didn't mean to scare you."

Zelda found herself shocked at the genuine remorse in his tone.

"I mean, why should someone as beautiful and powerful as you waste your time on one as worthless as me? I'm sorry."

That night, Zelda had been unable to sleep. Thoughts of Link invaded her mind all night, and as the rosy fingered dawn crept over the horizon she found herself realising that really, she wouldn't mind if anything further passed between them.

Link was the first man who had ever told her she was beautiful, and as an enormously insecure sixteen year old she found his praise more enchanting than any spell. The next morning she had been greeted with a note written in a hand unknown to her.

_If I offended you, or caused you any undue hurt then let it be known that it was never my intention to do so. I am truly sorry and hope that the events of last night will not lead to you hating this man who is besotted with you._

oOo

She had never thought that taking a lover would be as painless and rewarding as it was. Link inspired the sort of passion within her that she had never thought herself capable of, and in return he loved her overpoweringly. The first few weeks were a playful and joyous time for the princess, experiencing her first taste of freedom. Over time her feelings blossomed, and what had started out as an innocent romantic dalliance developed into a deeply passionate and close physical relationship. Often they would lie in Ganondorf's bed, making love between the unused sheets and laughing at their brazenness. Zelda found herself with her head on Link's chest one afternoon, listening to his heartbeat as it hammered beneath her ear and she found herself wondering how she had ever come to hate the act of sex quite as much as she had before she met him.

"What's so funny?"

Link was watching her curiously, a lazy smile upon his flushed face as he took in her sated expression.

"I was just thinking how much I hated being bedded before I met you."

"With a husband like yours I don't think many a woman would blame you."

Suddenly he had frowned as Zelda began to tremble violently in his arms.

"What is it? Zelda, what's wrong?"

It had all come out in a fit of sobs, how much she hated herself for letting Ganondorf use her the way he had, how she was shaming her father for not killing herself and following the family into the afterlife. How even now she was too weak and feeble to try and get her throne back. Link lay there, listening to her wordlessly and every now and then offering her a murmur of encouragement or reassurance. By the time that Zelda's outburst had ended, Link was deep in thought.

"You should get rid of him," he murmured. "Kill him."

Zelda sat up, horrified by the suggestion.

"Kill him?"

"The man's a tyrant, do you know why it's taking him so long to get that girl back from the Terminans? He's laying waste to their city and laying on a plundering so vicious that even the goddesses would blush at his greed. If it had just been about retribution then he would have been finished years ago, but it isn't. He's expanding his borders. All he needs is to take Termina and then he'll be back in triumph. He got Hyrule through conquest and marriage, what happens to you when another kingdom with an attractive princess comes to his attention?"

oOo

Zelda tried to put Link's suggestion to the back of her mind but it continued to play upon her thoughts. Every time she walked past the giant portrait of her husband in the main hallway she was confronted with the image of him cutting her throat the way that he had killed her mother, and instead of shrinking away from the idea in horror and bursting into tears she found herself building her resolution. She was not going to let him cast this Queen of Hyrule aside as easily as he had done the last.

In the end, it was one of Ganondorf's followers who cemented the idea in her head. The court had been assembled and were feasting in honour of the summer solstice.

"I propose a toast to our king," someone had said. "Long may he fight in Termina so that our queen can continue to rule us with such success."

There was a roar of laughter and Link had caught her eye, and so Zelda had ignored him, raising her goblet and drinking while inwardly she celebrated her praise.

"We are blessed in having a most wise and magnanimous queen and a king so formidable that no-one could possibly challenge him with success."

"Except perhaps his wife," Link had added.

There was another bark of amusement, and Link had laughed along with them. Zelda did not.

oOo

On the fifth anniversary of Ganondorf's absence, word arrived that the king had succeeded in laying waste to Termina and would be returning triumphantly with the Sage in tow within weeks. There was much rejoicing in the city and especially in the desert while there was total stillness inside the Queen's apartments. She became nervous and terrified, a pale shadow of what she had become over the last five years. Her followers were concerned, none more so than her lover.

"I'm worried about you, you aren't yourself."

"I don't want him to come back," Zelda murmured. "He'll come back and everything will be the same as it was when he went away. I'll be his whore again."

Link took her in his arms and held her against his body.

"It won't be the same, I'll still be here. There's nothing that says we have to stop what we're doing just because he's coming back."

Zelda took a deep breath, inhaling the scent of him and feeling calmed.

"I've been thinking about what you said," she whispered. "Everything would be so much easier if he was dead."

oOo

The chariot thundered up towards the castle, draped in gold and finery with a roar of a celebrating crowd to accompany its journey home. With the reins in his hands, tall and proud in his victory, stood Ganondorf Dragmire, lord of men. The eagle of Hyrule, who had swooped upon the vulnerable hares of Termina and demolished them. Power radiated from every inch of his body, and as the jewel of his crown appeared before him he felt contentment akin to ecstasy fill him. Soon he would be home, worshipped as the true king and conqueror that he was with his wife once again bowed in servitude towards him. Zelda had not been far from his thoughts over the years; none of the concubines he had bedded nor the princesses he had seen could compare to the child he had left behind. He imagined her as he had left her; subservient, accommodating and all too easy to bend towards his will. So much for the legendary pride and invincibility of the House of Hyrule.

"Are you troubled my lord?"

Twinrova stood beside him, her face concerned.

"No, I was just envisaging the warm welcome my wife will be giving me."

At the mention of the queen, the elder Gerudo's face hardened. She stared at her foster-son with an expression of concern.

"Ay, a warm welcome indeed. She means you harm."

Ganondorf threw back his head and laughed.

"Zelda means me harm? Your powers of perception have dimmed with age my lady. My good wife could no sooner harm me than a fairy child from the forest."

A great throng had assembled in the forecourt of the palace, cheering loudly and waving bright colours in welcome. His court massed upon the steps and there, at the top, stood the queen, resplendent in robes of white with her hair braided away from her face. Her face, Twinrova noticed, was totally expressionless. With a confident laugh, Ganondorf raised a hand in acknowledgement and waved at the crowd.

"First, with justice I salute my Hyrule and my gods, my accomplices who brought me home and won my rights from Termina."

The crowd cheered even louder. At this point, although he could not see it, Zelda's jaw tightened and she raised her head a fraction higher. Behind her came women servants, carrying splendid crimson tapestries which they began to spread out along the cobbles of the courtyard.

"Old nobility of Hyrule gathered here, I am not ashamed to tell you how I love the man. I am older and the fear dies away. Nothing I say was learned from others. This is my life, my ordeal, long as the siege he laid at Termina and more demanding. First, when a woman sits at home and the man is gone, the loneliness is terrible, unconscionable… and the rumours spread and fester, a runner comes with something dreadful, close on his heels the next and his news worse, and they shout it out and the whole house can hear; and wounds – if he took one wound for each report to penetrate these walls, he's gashed like a dragnet, more if he had only died… I never let it die… but in my dreams the high thin wail of a gnat would rouse me, piercing like a trumpet- I could see you suffer more than all the hours that slept with me could ever bear. I endured it all. And now, free of grief, I would salute that man, the watchdog of the fold, the mainroyal, saving stay of the vessel, rooted oak that thrusts the roof sky-high." She breathed deeply and then turned to the king, walking slowly down the gleaming white stairs. "Come to me now, my dearest, down from the car of war, but never set the foot that stamped out Termina on earth again, my great one. Women, why delay? You have your orders. Pave his way with tapestries. Quickly. Let the red stream flow and bear him home to the home he never hoped to see – Justice, lead him in! Leave all the rest to me. The spirit within me never yields to sleep."

Link caught Zelda's eye from his place in the crowd. His expression was steely.

"We will set things right, with the gods' help. We will do whatever Fate requires."

Her eyes never left his face.

Ganondorf stepped down from his chariot, arms raised as he proudly walked towards Zelda.

"There is Harkinian's daughter, the keeper of my house. And the speech to suit my absence, much too long." The crowd laughed, and for a moment Link saw Zelda check her anger as her lips thinned. "But the praise that does us justice let it come from others, then we prize it."

He reached Zelda at the top of the stairs and took hold of her shoulders, lightly kissing her cheeks. She smiled one of her dazzling smiles and gestured to the castle.

"Welcome home my liege," she murmured.

Grinning broadly, Ganondorf waved to the crowd and strode into the castle. Zelda's eyes rested upon the form of Twinrova and then she felt twelve years old again, trembling under the bed.

_Take her as your queen and know total victory. She is young, pure… she will bear you sons. None can challenge you if you have the true heir in your bed._

A flash of malice so fierce passed behind her eyes and she struggled even harder to check her anger. Twinrova swept past her in a flurry of exotic silks and perfumes, her head held high as she shot a glance of uneasy superiority at the younger woman. Zelda fought her sneer of outrage.

She wouldn't allow that witch to get away from her castle alive.

oOo

The plan had been for Link to sneak into the castle that night to cut Ganondorf's throat, but there was no way that Zelda could wait that long. The initial panic she had felt at the news of Ganondorf's arrival had made way for the powerful rush of hatred that had lived in her heart for all those years and it was overwhelming and terrifying. Twinrova's presence was like a catalyst, stirring at the angry fire inside.

And now, just a few short hours after his arrival and his tedious reliving of his triumphs in Termina, Ganondorf was well and truly home clear. Even from her private chambers Zelda could hear him barking out orders to her staff, his voice thunderous within the cavernous space of the castle.

"Servants! Get me some wine! Someone unload my treasure!"

Zelda loosened her hair from its braids and combed it out, revelling in the way it waved as it fell across her bare shoulders. She reached for the black satin bed-robe she had been keeping and slipped it on, examining the way it clung to her curves before reaching into the carved wooden box on her bureau and withdrawing a slender, bone handled dagger studded with rubies. It had been her father's. She tugged it from its leather sheath and gently kissed the polished silver blade before replacing and strapping it to her thigh, letting the black satin fall back in place over her flesh.

oOo

Ganondorf marched into his room, breathing a heavy sigh as he closed the door. He was exhausted, and wanted nothing more than to slip into a comfortable sleep for a few days. The state of the kingdom was surprisingly good, considering that he had left Zelda in charge of it. She had done a man's job of running the kingdom with very little difficulty apparently, and he was impressed by how she had developed over the five years of his absence. He grinned as he thought of the pleasure with which he would take her to bed and appreciate every curve and contour of her body.

And then he saw her.

She was reclined upon a chaise by the window, dressed entirely in black satin, clinging to the delicate curves of her body like a second skin. The robe was tied tight around her hips, leaving a great expanse of pale flesh visible from her navel to the collar bone.

"My lord husband must be tired from his journey," she purred. "I have ordered a bath for you sire, to be placed in your chambers. Should I send maids to aid you in your bathing or would you prefer that I be the one in attendance to Your Majesty?"

He had never dreamed that she would be this welcoming, this magnificent. She was like a sculpture, delicately carved in marble and gilded expertly. His smile became predatory.

"I should like it very much if you would attend on me," he managed, grateful that the subservience he had beaten into her still remained.

Smiling in a manner that was almost sultry, Zelda slipped towards him on silent feet and reached up around his neck to unfasten his scarlet cloak. It fell from his shoulders and pooled at his feet.

"The years have been far kinder to you than they have me, princess," he murmured, reaching to place a hand on the curve of her hip. "I left behind a child bride and I return home to find a queen beyond compare."

Zelda smiled wanly, relieving him of his leather jerkin and gauntlets.

"My lord speaks kindly," she replied softly. "I think you will find me much changed these last five years."

She finished undressing him in silence and then guided him towards the steaming hot bath that awaited, smelling heavily of spices and perfume. Ganondorf lowered his powerful form into the water and moaned in pleasure as his muscles began to relax. Zelda made a great show of smiling in delight and began to anoint his body in oil, massaging the slippery substance into his muscles and working at all of the tension in his frame.

"You are most tense my liege, try to relax," she soothed. "You are home and well, there is nothing for you to be afraid of here."

Ganondorf closed his eyes and allowed his head to rest on the edge of the tub, giving Zelda a perfect view of his exposed throat. One slice of a blade across his jugular and it could all be over. She swallowed and began to sponge the oil off his body, glancing down at the changes in his face while she worked. He had aged over the last five years, his brow had lined and his violent red hair was shot through with grey at the temples. The invulnerable king was getting old.

"You are clean, my dearest husband, and ready to face the world," she said at last, offering him her hand to help him stand. "Although I fear you have not yet taken the liberty of greeting your faithful wife in the appropriate manner."

Ganondorf smiled slowly, taking in the meaning of her words with great anticipation.

"My Zelda wishes to retire to bed?" he asked.

She smiled in such a manner that it sent a flood of desire through his body.

"Your Zelda wishes for a kiss," she whispered.

Ganondorf was all too eager to comply as he stepped from the tub and reached for her.

"It pleases your husband greatly to hear you say that."

His mouth claimed hers in a brutal, demanding kiss that Zelda struggled to respond to. She let her hands travel over the still slippery plane of his chest before tangling her left in the long hair at the nape of his neck. Unnoticed, her right hand travelled down his waist and finally rested upon his hip before it slid across the black satin to her thigh. Her fingers closed upon the handle of her dagger. Ganondorf was too absorbed to realise what was happening until he felt a hot, searing pain in his stomach.

"Ah!"

He stepped back, dropping his hand to the gaping wound in his belly.

"Wh-wh-ah!"

Zelda struck again, this time in his chest. The force sent him staggering backwards and he toppled into the bathtub, his blood mingling with the water and turning it scarlet.

"You had to come back, didn't you?" she snarled. "You couldn't just have died in Termina and saved me from having to do this!"

"Your Majesty!"

Zelda wrenched the dagger from his body and spun on her heel to come face to face with Twinrova, whose face was pale from the shock of seeing the bloody dagger in the Queen's hands.

"What have you done, you miserable bitch?" the witch hissed. "You've murdered him!"

Zelda's eyes were like ice, with a furious hatred so cold that the Gerudo took a frantic step backwards.

"His blood does not even come close to repaying what he has taken from me and my family, my kingdom," she growled. "For years I have stood by helplessly while he turned my homeland into his own, while he took over my house and my body. I should have died, he should have killed me like the others but he did not, he married me, and I of course have _you_ to thank for that honour, mistress Twinrova."

Twinrova was frozen to the spot in terror, her eyes fixed upon the knife in Zelda's hand.

"Blood for blood, one life for three. No, two lives will be given for my family tonight."

Twinrova understood her meaning too late and turned to run, screaming as she did, but Zelda was too fast for her. She tripped her, sending the older woman toppling towards the floor. Desperate, she veered for the door as she fell, bashing into long table that threw her off course. With a sickening crack, Twinrova's head bounced against the stone wall and she landed motionless on the ground, blood pouring from her smashed skull. Zelda gasped, sickened by the sight before steeling herself and crouching to check for life. Tentatively, she rolled the body over with her foot and felt for a pulse, finding none. The witch's unseeing yellow eyes stared up at her, the look of horror frozen on her tanned face for all perpetuity.

Zelda released the breath she had been holding and turned back to the bathtub. Ganondorf was slumped within, his chest rising and falling with difficulty. There was a strange, whistling sound as the breath whistled out of his lungs through where the dagger had punctured. There was blood everywhere, she had never imagined that the scent would be so overpowering. She tightened her fingers around the handle of her dagger.

"I never… thought you'd have the… guts to do something like this," Ganondorf wheezed.

"You underestimated me," she snapped. "I'm not a child, nor am I some feeble wench to sleep with and ignore."

Ganondorf closed his eyes, his face very pale and covered in sweat.

"So you've finally got your… revenge," he whispered. "Foolish little bitch… you won't get… away with it."

"I don't expect to."

Ganondorf laughed, a dry chuckle that soon collapsed into a fit of rattling coughs. More blood spilled across his lips.

"I win princess," he rasped. "How does it feel to be… a murderer?"

He laughed again, a grotesque sound that sent Zelda's blood running cold in her veins. With a scream of outrage, she plunged the dagger into his chest again and again, ignoring the hoarse cries and the mocking laughter. Again and again she stabbed until the laughter was no more.

oOo

She couldn't breathe.

The tormenting storm of emotions which coursed through her being was constricting everything, and as she struggled to catch her breath she had to lean heavily against the wall to stop herself from fainting.

He was dead.

At long last, he was dead.

The door opened suddenly and Link charged in, his sword flashing in the candlelight. He caught sight of Twinrova's corpse on the floor, saw the blood and then glanced across at the bathtub, where the body of the king could be seen, covered in blood with a jewel encrusted dagger buried deep between his ribs.

The sound of laughter was the last thing he had been expecting to hear.

Zelda stood with her back to him, facing the bed. Her laughter was high, unnaturally so, and for a moment he felt absolutely terrified.

"Zelda?"

Her hands were covered with blood, her cheeks covered in tears. And still she laughed; she laughed with all the strength she had.

"What have you done?" he whispered, comprehending immediately.

"I killed him," she admitted between fits. "I killed him."

The smell of blood was overpowering, even to a seasoned warrior like himself. Zelda's face was pale, and he could see behind the hysterical laughter that her tears were tears of anguish.

"I killed him," she repeated.

Her knees buckled and Link caught her as she fell. She clung to him and wept, burying her face against his chest and holding on to him like a limpet clings to a rock. Apprehensively, he moved his hand to her hair and stroked it lightly as her tears became more tormented.

"Don't you see?" she whispered. "Now I'm just like him."

oOo

**This story is based on Aeschylus' tragedy _The Agamemnon_, in which the King of ****Mycenae**** is murdered by his wife Clytemestra due to his sacrifice of their daughter Iphigenia in order to sail to ****Troy****. If any of you liked this story, then I recommend reading Aeschylus' play and seeing how it should be done because I can't even begin to scratch the surface of it here.**

**The word _Eumenide_(pronounced 'you-men-I-dee') means Fury, as in the avenging female monsters of mythology who hunted down and destroyed purveyors of murders and other nasty business of a similar ilk. **


End file.
